


unsteady

by pallidrose



Category: Keeper of the Lost Cities Series - Shannon Messenger
Genre: Everyone Needs A Hug, F/F, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:35:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28323219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pallidrose/pseuds/pallidrose
Summary: “You’re crying,” she murmured. “I’ve never seen you cry before.”
Relationships: Marella Redek/Linh Song
Comments: 14
Kudos: 27





	unsteady

**Author's Note:**

> Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4yXbjMMDTpXP5itcIbELZA?si=YD5YqX1-RkaZZZdVo_pmxw
> 
> Apparently Linh is still staying at Choralmere as of Unlocked, so who knows when this is set. Interpret it as you will.

“Marella?” Linh whispered. “Is that you?”

The figure at the door gave a shaky nod and stumbled forward. Linh caught her before she could trip on the threshold. Inside, the crystal chandelier bathed Marella’s face in light, giving Linh a better look.

“You’re crying,” she murmured. “I’ve never seen you cry before.”

Marella threw her arms around her and buried her head in her shoulder. “Can- can we go sit?” she mumbled, her voice muffled.

Linh gave a silent nod, and guided her into the hallway toward her room. Marella hesitated outside the door.

“I don’t want Tam-”

“He isn’t here,” Linh promised. “He has his own room now.”

She hadn’t liked the arrangement. She’d spent years at Tam’s side, rarely leaving his line of sight. But- however reluctantly- they’d agreed that they each needed some space to heal. To remember what it was like to _not_ depend on each other for their survival every day.

And although Linh didn’t like to admit it, Glimmer might have had something to do with it, too.

Linh didn’t trust her. How could she? She’d restrained her brother, controlled him, forced him to torture Keefe, and didn’t even have the decency to show her face. Yet Tam was willing to put his life in her hands. And as far as he was concerned, Linh should do the same.

It had been their first real fight, their first conflict. Sure, he had yelled at her once before, told her and Sophie to stop reaching out to him, to keep away from him and the Neverseen. But that had been fueled by concern for her safety. Out of _love._

This… this was conflict with only vehement disagreement at its core.

But however horribly it made Linh’s heart ache, she felt a twinge of gratitude for it now as she cast another worried look at Marella’s tearstained face.

She bit her lip, setting her down on the edge of her bed and kneeling before her. “You aren’t hurt, are you?” 

Marella _looked_ fine- at least, she couldn’t detect any visible injuries. But clearly something was wrong, and Linh couldn’t fathom what had brought the bravest person she knew to _this_.

“No.” Marella’s voice was hoarse, and she shook her head, wiping her eyes. “It’s not like that.” She hesitated, her pale eyes meeting Linh’s. “Sorry,” she muttered after a long moment. “I shouldn’t have bothered you.” She started to stand, but Linh stopped her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“You aren’t leaving yet,” she said firmly. “You aren’t bothering me, and you aren’t fine. You can trust me, Marella. I want to help you.” Her eyes drifted over Marella’s face. There was something different about her, something _off_. But she couldn’t quite place it.

“Your braids,” she realized. “You aren’t wearing your braids. I thought your mom always did them.”

Marella gave a rough laugh. “Not today.”

Linh’s mouth formed a soft _o_. “Your mom. Is she having a bad day?”

She snorted. “You could say that. I figured I should leave before I accidently set something on fire.”

“You wouldn’t have.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I do. I’ve seen the determination in you when we train. It’s… inspiring,” she admitted.

 _And beautiful_.

“ _I_ _nspiring_ isn’t going to make people trust me. They won’t even get close to me. And they’re jumpy. Like I’m going to explode any second.”

Linh knew what she meant. It was the same for her after the first flood. The way they eyed her warily, but refused to make eye contact. The way they skittered away from her when she approached.

Saving Atlantis hadn’t made much difference. Even now, she was an ex-Wayward, a member of the Black Swan. People viewed her as a threat- at the very least, as something inherently _other_.

And they all knew how the elves treated anyone who didn’t fit into their neat little boxes.

Glares, scoffs, harsh words. Avoidance. Linh had dealt with them all, and worse.

But to know that they were treating _Marella_ that way, _her_ Marella…

Linh had never been good at anger. She didn’t understand how Sophie could step into her rage, embrace it, use it to fuel her. Maybe it came with being an Inflictor. Anger gave her power. But for Linh, even righteous anger posed a threat to everyone she loved. Because if she ever let herself drown in her fury, they would drown in her deluge.

Maybe it was better that way. But now, looking into Marella’s tear-filled eyes, Linh could have flooded the entire world, and it still wouldn’t be enough.

 _You have to stay soft,_ she reminded herself. _Stay soft and keep them safe._

So she met Marella’s eyes, acting for all the world like she was the collected, gentle girl the world believed her to be.

“Do you want to stay here tonight?”

Marella hesitated. “You’d be okay with that?”

“Of course,” she promised. "If you’re comfortable with it.”

She nodded, then cleared her throat. “Um. Yeah. That works.”

Linh got to her feet. “I’ll be back in a moment,” she promised. “Make yourself comfortable.”

She left the room, stumbling through the house and, finally found a closet stocked with extra blankets and pillows.

Slowly pushing her door open again, she tiptoed across the room, She draped a blanket over the floor, pulling another over herself and drawing it close. It isn’t the most comfortable sleeping arrangement, but she’s seen a lot worse.

“Linh.”

She pushed herself up to see that The-Lump-That-Was-Marella sitting upright, eyeing her with one eyebrow raised.

“I’m not making you sleep on the _floor,_ stupid,” Marella said. “If you're letting me stay, we share. There’s more than enough room for us both.”

She froze, then shook her head. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine down here.”

“And you’ll be _better_ up _here._ Come on.”

Linh hesitated. “You’re sure?”

Marella’s “yeah” sounded almost like a dare, and Linh felt heat spread across her face.

Watching Marella’s face for any trace of opposition, she crawled into the bed beside her. None came, and she settled under the covers, jostling the bed just enough to send a stray lock of hair falling across Marella’s features. Without thinking, Linh reached out and brushed it away. Marella’s eyes followed her fingers.

“I don’t get it,” she said suddenly.

“What do you mean?”

“I just…” she hesitated. “I don’t get why you _care_ . Sophie didn’t. Dex didn’t, and he knows what it’s like to be left out. I didn’t mean anything to them until it turned out they needed information, and then I manifested and they needed my power. And _that_ still scares them.” She squinted at her. “So why are you different?

Linh hesitated. “I know what it’s like to be afraid of yourself. To fear what you could do, if you let yourself get out of hand. To refuse to let yourself feel angry, or sad. I think Sophie knows, too. It’s what keeps her going.”

“I’m angry at a lot of things,” Marella whispered. “The Neverseen, the pyrokinesis ban, the prejudice against twins. It’s not fair.”

“I know,” Linh told her. “I’m angry, too, sometimes. I want to scream at the Council, and everyone who stands with them, and never stop screaming.”

Marella quirked an eyebrow. “Really? You?”

Linh looked away. “I’m not as nice as people think.” She swallowed. “I… I haven’t been speaking to Tam for a few days. I know it’s horrible of me, but I’ve never been this angry at Tam before. It scares me. _I’m_ scaring me.”

“Whoa. Wait a sec. Being mad doesn’t make you _horrible._ It just means you’re a person. And you _don’t_ always hurt people. Trust me.”

“I’ve flooded entire cities. How many people barely escaped Atlantis? And Ravagog?”

“What happened in Ravagog needed to happen. You saved an entire _species_ , Linh. And you saved Atlantis, too. That’s how I know you’ll fix things between you and Tam.” She paused. “And honestly, if this is about Glimmer- and I’m guessing it is- there are way pettier things to get mad about.”

“Such as?”

“The fact that you haven’t offered to braid my hair yet.”

Linh giggled. “I’ll braid your hair in the morning.” She draped an arm over Marella, pulling her close until their foreheads touched. “For now, get some rest, sleepyhead.”


End file.
